HAMPTON, Ga. – With only three weeks remaining in the 2024 Thursday Thunder season, competitors set out to paint themselves into the championship picture in a special Wednesday showcase.
Drivers across all divisions showed a sense of urgency in setting themselves up for a successful championship night.
Brooks, Ga., native Garrett Gumm and Jensen Jorgensen (Stockbridge, Ga) have brought thrilling battles to the Thunder Ring all season long. After five rounds of on track battles, Gumm entered the week with a narrow two-point advantage over Jorgensen in the WJP Investments Pro division. With the gap between himself and Jorgensen being so small, Gumm opted to start at the back of the field to pursue additional passing points. Meanwhile, Jorgensen flipped the script from last week and decided to start at the front of the field following qualifying.
Jorgensen and his No. 32 car jumped out to a sizeable lead early while Gumm attempted to battle his way to the front. Without Gumm on his bumper, Jorgensen was able to run away with the race win, leading every lap enroute to his third victory of the season. Gumm needed a third-place finish or better to maintain his place atop the standings but struggled to rise up the scoring pylon. A last-lap effort to overtake New York driver Sean McElearney came up just a few inches short, relegating Gumm to 4th in the race and second in the championship standings.
In a night filled with championship battles, there was also time for a new winner. Mitch Wright (Curtis, Ontario) took home his first win in the Semi-Pro Division by holding off division championship leader and multi-time winner this season Kyle Bacon (Buchanan, Ga.).
Earlier in the evening’s slate of racing, Wyatt Coffey (Waynesboro, Va.) and James Behnke (Canton, Ga.) entered Round 6 tied for the lead atop the Bandits division. During the feature race, both drivers displayed just how tight their division’s title race is as Coffey held off an early challenge by a determined Behnke to secure a fourth win in the Bandits division and take sole possession of the points lead.
In other action, Cole Denton (Pascagoula, Miss) dominated from start to finish, further establishing himself as the driver to beat in The Associates Group Young Lions division championship. The deepest field of the season for the Masters division saw a caution-filled race. Despite the stop-and-go affair, Josh Mullins (Columbia, Tenn.) had no difficulty fending off the pack for a convincing win in his first race of the season at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Phillip Young (Dallas, Ga.) finished 4th, good enough to extend his points lead with only two rounds remaining.
Across the night’s other features, Bryson Nichols (Hampton, Va.) made a last lap pass for the win in the Adrenalin Powersports Outlaws division. Abi Johnson (Fort Meyers, FL) sat atop the field from flag to flag to earn her first win of the season in the Chargers Racing Experience while the Rookie Bandolero Racing Experience had Connor Sanders (Dublin, Ga.) return to victory lane for the first time since Round 1.
Thursday Thunder’s next event is the penultimate round of the 2024 season on Thursday, July 11.
Here are the complete results from Round 6 of Thursday Thunder 2024:
Chargers
1. Johnson, Abi (Fort Meyers, FL)
2. Lee, Billy (Ruskin, FL)
3. Franklin, Will (Covington, GA)
4. Johnson, Allee (Ft. Myers, FL)
5. Shelnutt, Anthony (Hamilton, GA)
6. Carmichael, Ayden (Cocoa, FL)
7. Hutchins, Rhylee (Mount Pleasant, NC)
Rookie Bandoleros
1. Sanders, Connor (Dublin, GA)
2. Prowell, Maci (Brooksville, FL)
3. Glass, Cam (Juliet, GA)
4. Pennington, Daylen (Radiator Springs, AZ)
5. Tate, Casen (Zebulon, GA)
6. Meyers, Tinsley (Zephryhills, FL)
7. Lofy, Craig (BONAIRE, GA)
8. Hodge, Ellie (Charlotte, NC)
9. Shirley, Reese (Rainbow City, AL)
Adrenalin Powersports Outlaws
1. Nichols, Bryson (Hampton, VA)
2. Sherman, Carson (Loganville, GA)
3. Cauble, Carson (Salisbury, NC)
4. Lee, Mandi (Granite Quarry, NC)
5. Martinez, Addison (West Palm Beach, FL)
6. Mallette, Kamryn (Vancleave, MS)
7. Young, Luke (Dallas, GA)
8. Impellizzeri, Lilly (Munroe falls, OH)
Bandits
1. Coffey, Wyatt (Waynesboro, VA)
2. Behnke, James (Canton, GA)
3. Thompson, Bentley (West Salem, WI)
4. Rudolph, Briella (Griffin, GA)
5. Johnson, Evan (Vancleave, MS)
6. Castille, Bryce (Vancleave, MS)
7. Glass, Colton (Juliette, GA)
8. Billings, Emily (Waterloo, WI)
Masters
1. Mullins, Josh (Columbia, TN)
2. Moseley, Scott (McDonough, GA)
3. Swan, Mark (Athens, GA)
4. Young, Phillip (Dallas, GA)
5. Plemons, Bill Jr (Locust Grove, GA)
6. Fox, James (Ackworth, GA)
7. Chambers, Mike (Griffin, GA)
8. Armbruster, Tony (Covington, GA)
9. Young, Lisa (Dallas, GA)
10. Carpenter, Steve (Land O'lakes, FL)
11. Pierce, Dwight (Griffin, GA)
12. Chambers, Lamar (Griffin, GA)
13. Gresham, Greg (Waverly, TN)
The Associates Group Young Lions
1. Denton, Cole (Pascagoula, MS)
2. Sanders, Bryce (Ola, GA)
3. Bongiovanni, Dylan (Cumming, GA)
4. Haire, Will (Savannah, GA)
5. O'Neil, Baylor (Grantville, GA)
6. Flater, Mitchell (Conyers, GA)
7. Pate, Alex (Bartlett, TN)
8. Lamarre, Jack (Hoschton, GA)
9. Harris, Keeton (Huntsville, AL)
10. Warner, Austin (Bossier City, LA)
Semi-Pro
1. Wright, Mitch (Curtis, ON)
2. Holle, Jerrod (Tampa, FL)
3. Reynolds, Jackson (Marietta, GA)
4. Bacon, Kyle (Buchanan, GA)
5. Gaul, Cooper (Seminole, FL)
6. Martinez, Jesse (West Palm Beach, FL)
7. Faulkner, Dylan (Goodlettsville, TN)
8. Ryan, Noah (Griffin, GA)
9. Britt, Emma (Hampton, GA)
10. Hicks, Katelyn (Senoia, GA)
11. Almond, CJ (Atlanta, GA)
12. Cosier, Brian (Marietta, GA)
WJP Investments Pro
1. Jorgensen, Jensen (Stockbridge, GA)
2. Taylor, Jonathan (Roswell, GA)
3. McElearney, Sean (Babylon, NY)
4. Gumm, Garrett (Brooks, GA)
5. Esposito, Gianni (Dacula, GA)
6. Dilbeck, Chris (Concord, NC)
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